For the first quarter of 2013, the highest level of electricity loss was in the South Georgetown area with the average monthly electricity losses being 60%, according to the Guyana Power and Light (GPL) Inc.
Comprising 5501 accounts, the area which is serviced by Feeder SF5 covers Tucville Well, Sophia Well, South Ruimveldt Park east of Penny Lane, Festival City, North Ruimveldt, South Ruimveldt Gardens west of Penny Lane, West Ruimveldt, East Ruimveldt, Roxanne Burnham Gardens, Guyhoc Park and Ebenezer Drive.
GPL last week released the data in response to a Stabroek News article which featured statements by Prime Minister Samuel Hinds suggesting that APNU try to get its supporters to pay their power bills. Hinds’ comments were labelled as “plain stupid” by Opposition Leader David Granger who urged the PM to retract it.
In a two-page ad, GPL said that it wished to “emphatically clarify and disprove” the assertions made by the opposition representatives and said that Hinds stated the known facts which were presented to the Parliamentary Sectoral Committees earlier this year.
“I call on (APNU) MP (Joe) Harmon to join me in bringing down the losses, the non-technical losses we are having. Some 40% in areas to the South and West of Georgetown where he has political standing,” Hinds had said at the commissioning of the Ruimveldt substation. “Where total losses are down to 10 and 12 percent, we see areas in the South and West of Georgetown where losses are up to 60 percent; 20 percent technical and 40 percent non-technical…let us start leading our people into the right things let us not make ambiguous statements,” he said.
“…the areas which were being referenced by the Prime Minister shows the total losses for the feeder in contention is 60% with technical losses at 17.4% and non-technical losses at 42.6%,” GPL said in the ad. The company said that this should be compared with the area served by feeder VH-F3 (Vreed-en-Hoop to Windsor Forest) which with 7104 customers – as compared with 5,501 customers – has a total loss of 9.8%; 9.6 % technical and 0.2% non-technical.
The power company noted that technical losses reflect those attributed to GPL’s network and non-technical losses are mainly electricity theft. The total number of customers within the zone of contention (SP5) is 5,501 and losses per customer is US$49 or GD$10,000 per month, GPL noted.
GPL said that Granger went on to note that Hinds’ remarks were “plain stupid” and that he has no evidence to support this, but according to the company, the data provided refutes Granger’s remarks.
Harmon had also spoken with Stabroek News and had said that: “If there is a higher level of theft in an area then you have to compare (that) with the population in that area.
The areas that GPL selected…has the largest population density but if they analyze the information properly, they may very well find the actual cost to GPL for theft of electricity might not reside in that area. Because there are smaller communities with heavier losses.”
To this, GPL said that the analysis is proper and encouraged everyone to compare the number of customers and the losses absolute and percentage wise on each feeder.
Following the area served by Feeder SF5, the next area with high electricity losses include the East Coast Demerara with losses at 43.9% within the Sophia to Coldingen area and 42.2% in ‘A’ to ‘E’ Fields in Sophia. Other areas with high losses include Coldingen to Bygeval with losses pegged at 37.1%, North Sophia to Success with losses at 34.4% and the area served by Feeder SF3 which includes parts of Prashad Nagar, Lamaha Gardens, East of Sheriff and South of Dennis Streets, Norton Street, Princes Street, Tucville, Meadowbrook, Werk-en-Rust west of John Street, West La Penitence and part of Middle Road with losses pegged at 37.4%.
Other areas with losses in the 30% percent range include those on Water Street between New Market Street and Avenue of the Republic and Brickdam where losses are at 36.9%. From Edinburgh to Lookout, Parika on the West Demerara, losses are 35.9%. In Wakenaam, the losses are 37.2% while in Leguan the loss is pegged at 30.7%. In Bartica, losses are 32.3%.
GPL said that all citizens should take heed and work to lower the losses reflected in their communities. “As the PM cited at the Commissioning Ceremony, this false ‘right’ to steal electricity requires change in culture,” the company asserted in the advertisement.
